Hyperlocal Tokyo

During my time living in Asakusa, I would often visit "Yutaka." When it comes to tonkatsu in Asakusa, there are so many options that it's hard to say which is the best, but I would say this place is among the top in terms of overall culinary balance. At Yutaka, the first thing I usually order is yakitori or shiokara. I'm getting older, so today I went with shiokara instead of yakitori. By the way, the yakitori is also incredibly delicious (but it takes a long time to prepare, so it's not ideal for drinking). The shiokara is light, with little odor and a mild saltiness. The squid is cut into thin pieces, making it very easy to eat. I pair it with a bottle of Super Dry beer. When I order yakitori, I usually get the scallop fry set or the ginger pork set, but today I went with the loin set for 2,500 yen. The loin isn't particularly thick, it's a standard cut, and the meat is lean, not the kind of fatty loin you might expect. This lean meat, combined with the traditional copper pot frying that makes it crispy, results in a completely non-greasy experience. This lightness is a hallmark of Yutaka. You can eat it with Worcestershire sauce, salt, or mustard. The hand-cut cabbage is best with Worcestershire sauce. The tonkatsu is good with salt or Worcestershire sauce, but I have a different way of eating it here. If you ask, they'll bring you soy sauce. I eat it with that. Yutaka's lean loin goes really well with soy sauce. They also have other dishes like a shrimp salad with huge shrimp, and a crab salad with a mountain of crab. Every dish is made with care. Yutaka's strength is its overall value. I highly recommend visiting at night and enjoying it with some drinks.

The food was simply delicious, a taste I'd never experienced before! It wasn't overly greasy, making it light and easy to eat. This is the first time I've had fried food without feeling any stomach discomfort! The shredded cabbage seemed to be hand-cut, and it was incredibly sweet. I couldn't resist ordering more. If you're going for the first time, I highly recommend trying the pork cutlet with salt. You won't regret it!

I visited this restaurant after reading the reviews. It was a Sunday during peak cherry blossom season, so I expected a huge crowd. I parked in a nearby coin parking lot that cost ¥440 for 15 minutes, which was quite expensive, but luckily, I was able to get a table right away when I arrived around noon. My son ordered the pork sauté定食, and my wife and I had the pork cutlet定食. It took about 25 minutes for the food to arrive, but it was definitely worth the wait. The tonkatsu sauce here is Worcestershire sauce. I usually prefer a medium-thick sauce, so I was a bit surprised. There was only Worcestershire sauce on the table, and it seemed they didn't offer any other options. I ended up using the Worcestershire sauce, and it was actually quite good. The flavor of the meat didn't get overpowered by the sauce. However, I'm not sure why they only offer one sauce option. It felt like a basic service was missing, which was a bit disappointing. Other than that, everything was great. The restaurant is located in a side street off the main road, so it's a bit quieter and you can enjoy your meal in peace. I also tried a bite of my son's pork sauté. It had a subtle brandy flavor that added a nice touch. There were also some foreign tourists there, probably after doing some research. They were enjoying their meal with their family.

I had the pork cutlet set meal. The cutlet was small but the meat was thick and fried to perfection. It was a breaded pork cutlet served with a light sauce. The fatty parts were delicious when eaten with salt.

We ordered pork cutlet, scallop cutlet, oyster fry, and sashimi. We shared everything (except the sashimi) among four people, and it was all delicious. I can't say anything other than delicious. The cabbage is also crisp and goes well with the fried food. Of course, the rice and miso soup were great too.